


The Brown Envelope.

by Larxicana



Category: Naruto
Genre: Family, Friendship, Hokage Naruto, Humor, Older Naruto, i teared up writing this, warm and fuzzy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 12:47:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9072304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Larxicana/pseuds/Larxicana
Summary: This was it. He was finally going to do it. No more backing out, no more cold feet. Naruto was finally going to go through with plans he had been making since he was seventeen years old. This was big, huge... ginormous even. This was something that was going to forever change not only his life, but Iruka's too. Well, that is... if he says yes.





	

A man walked down the busy streets of Konoha with his hands stuffed into his pockets and his shoulders hunched against the cold that January always brought, but that didn’t damper his mood in the slightest. Today was a very exciting day, the kind that gave him butterflies in his stomach and made him want to throw up. He couldn’t even eat breakfast that morning! He had to subtly shove it under the table where Kakashi’s dogs made quick work of it. It had been his favorite too; white rice mixed with scrambled eggs, green onions, and ketchup. Couldn’t have scrambled eggs without ketchup.

The man easily made his way through the crowd of people who were hurrying to get to their destinations and out of the cold. He smiled at a few and nodded, but made sure not to linger and make conversation, in fear of being found out. He was also afraid that if he opened his mouth for speech, he would throw up all over their shoes, and with everyone wearing socks and sandals, it would be a very unpleasant experience.

He turned a corner, nearly missing an elderly woman with impressive speed, but was grabbed and pulled into a dark alley. He let out a squawk and flailed a little, until he was shoved against the wall with a forearm pressed to his chest. He looked up to see an Anbu agent glaring at him through the eye holes of his falcon mask.

Shit.

“U-uh, good morning, Anbu-san,” He started in an uneasy voice, showing an equally uneasy smile as he held up his hands. “What can this old man do for you?”

“Cut the shit.” The agent snapped then pulled off his mask so he could glare at him more effectively. “Where the hell do you think you’re going, Naruto? Did you honestly think a few shadow clones and that sorry excuse for a disguise would fool me?”

Naruto sighed, dropping his hands and shoulders as he glanced down at the ground through the fake glasses he wore. He should have known better, honestly. Sasuke was too smart for the usual tricks he used on other Anbu. “Aww come on, Sasu…” He lifted his now brown eyes to the others dark ones and made them as big and puppy-like as he could. “Can a guy go out and have a little time to himself?”

“Not when he’s the fucking Hokage.” Sasuke snapped, digging his elbow into the man’s shoulder. “You signed your freedom over when you agreed to take the chair. Now, you’re coming back with me and you’re going to go to that fucking _mandatory_ meeting this morning and you’re _not_ going to complain about it, got it?”

Naruto pushed out his bottom lip, “But I don’t like the mandatory meetings! I’m Hokage, I should be able to say _no I don’t want to do that_ whenever I want!” Sasuke’s eyes narrowed at him, telling Naruto he wasn’t buying his seriously lame excuse. Finally the now brunette man sighed and ran a hand through his curly hair. “Ok look, I can’t go to that this morning, seriously. I have something important I need to take care of.”

The Anbu scoffed and stood up straight to cross his arms, “Ramen at Ichikaru is _not_ an important matter.”

“Sasuke, I’m serious.” Naruto frowned as he stepped away from the wall. The tone in which he spoke and the look on his face caused Sasuke to pause. It wasn’t often he saw the man looking quite like _that._ “I… need to do this, ok? It’s important to me and I… I need to do it before I lose my confidence and totally back out. _Again._ I’m not gonna do anything stupid or sneak out of the village… Hell, you can even trail after me, if it’ll make you feel better, but I’m not going back until I do this.” He made a motion with his hand like he was firmly tapping a surface with his finger.

Sasuke was quiet at this as he studied the man with a skeptical look, but after a long moment, it faded with a sigh. He rubbed his face and closed his eyes, running through his options in his head, before he finally looked up at him. “Fine. Do your stupid errands, but I’m going to be following you. I’m not going to take no for an answer.” Figuring that was as good as it was gonna get, Naruto nodded and gave him a little smile. The Anbu lingered for a moment longer before disappearing in the blink of an eye, no doubt hiding away on a nearby rooftop. As he pushed up his glasses, Naruto turned back onto the street and continued to his destination.

Just outside the city center, not far from the Academy he once went to, was an apartment complex that was home to the man he came to see. Once he was safely inside, hidden away in the empty hallways, he dropped his disguise in a puff of smoke and bit his lip. He felt his heart pounding against his chest, causing him to lift a hand to press it there, as though he were afraid it would escape. He had faced many terrors over his short life, but not once had he ever been scared or nervous. Now he felt like he was going to be sick.

Taking a deep breath, he finally lifted a hand and knocked on the door.

Behind it he could hear shuffling and a cheerful “just a minute!” as someone moved towards the door. Suddenly Naruto was regretting every action he took to get to this point in his life and tensed like he was going to make a run for it, but the door swung open. Bright, surprised eyes greeted him, as well as that kind smile that gave him a warm feeling every time he saw it.

“Naruto!” Iruka said in pleasant surprise, “What a surprise! Come in, come in!” He stepped aside and allowed the man through, where he paused to slip off his shoes. “To what do I owe the honor, Hokage-sama?” There was a tease and a little smirk on Iruka’s lips as he started towards the kitchen, glancing over his shoulder to see if the man would follow.

“Aww come on, Iruka-sensei. Not you too.” Naruto followed him with a pout, stuffing his hands into his pants pockets.

Iruka chuckled and placed a kettle on the stove for tea. “I could say the same to you. I’m not your sensei anymore, Naruto. I haven’t been for a very long time.”

“You say that like it’s been decades.”

“Almost.” The brunette turned around to cross his arms and lean back against the counter. “How old are you now, Naruto?”

The blonde scratched his nose in thought, “Twenty-nine.”

“You were eight when you started the Academy, so yes, it’s been decades.” Iruka sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, smiling a little, “Man I feel old.”

It would never ceased to amaze Naruto how much time had _really_ passed since he was a child. It all felt like it was yesterday; entering the Academy, pulling pranks, running down the halls with his friends while Iruka chased after them with murder in his eyes. He couldn’t help but grin and chuckle at the memories. “Yeah, me too! Where does the time go, ya know?”

Iruka held up a hand and gave him a serious look, “If you find out, tell me. I’d like to get some of that back.” He then smiled and turned to pull the whistling kettle off the stove.

“Right?” The blonde turned and glanced around the living room that was open to Iruka’s kitchen. After the war, everything had been destroyed, which meant the man’s apartment was different. It was kind of a shame, because Naruto liked the old apartment. He practically grew up there, with all the times Iruka had invited him over for dinner or to help him with school work. Then when he got older, he’d still ended up there more than his own place, with all the times they had old movie marathons that had him crashing on the sofa, only to wake up to the smell of pancakes and tea. He also remembered a section of wall where he would stand every time he came over, with his back pressed against it and a hand on his head, insisting he had grown since the day before.

_“Honest, sensei! I totally grew like a couple of inches!”_

_“Naruto, I measured you yesterday. You didn’t grow that much in one day!”_

_“No come on! I totally did! Look, look! I’m totally taller!”_

_“You’re standing on your toes! That doesn’t count!”_

_“Aww come on! It so does!”_

“Naruto,” The blonde man blinked a few times and turned to face Iruka, who was standing beside him with two cups, watching him curiously. “Are you alright?”

Naruto grinned and took one of the cups, rubbing the back of his head, “Ah, yeah. Just kinda spaced out I guess.” He gave a shrug, “I miss your old apartment. You remember the wall you kept track of my height on?”

Iruka laughed, “How could I forget? Every time you came over here, you’d ask me to measure you. And then you came back two year later and grew two feet!” He man stuck out his lower lip as he glanced up at the grown man beside him, “And now you’re taller than me. You can stop growing now, ya know. There’s no need to keep rubbing my age in my face.” He then turned to walk into the living room and sat down at his kotatsu, sighing at the warmth against his feet. “So, was there a reason for your visit?”

Naruto swallowed hard as he felt his blood drain from his face. Right. He had a reason. “Um, yeah.” He walked over to the low table and took a seat across from the other man, feeling tense. “I uh… well… There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you about and um… I just… never got the courage…”

Iruka raised an eyebrow at the younger man, setting his cup down on the table, “Oh? What is it? It must be pretty serious if it’s got you all worked up like this…” He narrowed his eyes at him as he pushed out his lips. “Are you getting married?”

Naruto’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as he jumped near sky high. “What?! No! Of course not!”

Iruka smirked and leaned across the table as he put a hand to his chin, “You answered that awfully fast.”

The blonde wildly waved his hands at him, “I am _not_ getting married!”

“Who is it?”

“Sensei…”

“Is it Sakura?”

“N-no way! She scares me!”

“Hinata?”

“No!”

Iruka smirked wider, looking like a minx, “Is it Sasuke?”

Somewhere outside, Naruto swore he heard a squawk, followed by a thud that sounded like someone falling off a high perch. Or maybe that was just the blood thundering through his head. _“Sensei!”_

The brunette waved a hand as he leaned back, “Alright, alright. I’ll let you off the hook this time. But I’m expecting grandbabies, whether they’re of blood or adopted.” He took a sip of his tea as he watched Naruto mutter under his breath, very amused. “Ok, but in all seriousness… what did you want to talk about?”

Naruto swallowed and suddenly wished they were talking about his marriage again. “Oh uh… right. Ok. So um… Ok look I’ve been thinking- like, thinking _a lot_ lately, about the same thing and stuff. Actually, I’ve been thinking about it since I was a teenager but… ha… never got the courage ‘til now, ya know?” He rubbed the back of his neck and gave a sheepish, nervous smile, then glanced down at his cup as he worked his lower lip. Iruka didn’t make any jokes this time, much to his dismay. Finally, Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. _“No, ok. I’m not going to chicken out this time. I’m gonna do this. I’m almost thirty years old! I can do this!”_ He thought to himself, then lifted his eyes to meet Iruka’s. The brunette’s widened at the seriousness and determination in them. Naruto unzipped his jacket to reach in and grab the brown envelope that was practically burning a hole in his chest since he left the office this morning. He pulled it out and slapped it down on the table top before sliding it across. Startled, Iruka blinked at the thick envelope, then glanced up at the blonde. When given a firm nod, he picked it up and undid the string tying it shut.

The idea to reach over the table, snatch the envelope up, then run for the hills screaming like a little girl sounded really good right about then.

As he watched Iruka lift the flap of the envelope, Naruto dug his short nails into his palms so hard, he wouldn’t be surprised if they bled. He pressed his lips together as he felt his heart hammer against his chest. He felt like he would cry and the man hadn’t even looked inside yet! It was like the world was moving in slow motion! He was going to be sick.

Iruka pulled back one side of the envelope to peer inside, “What is this?” He asked, but Naruto was too busy eating his lip to answer. Iruka pulled out the stack of papers to see them better, but was momentarily distracted when a smaller form fell to the floor. Naruto wanted to scream when the man paused to pick it up. The brunette then turned his attention back to the stack, “Article 443’s…” He mumbled to himself, frowning his brows in confusion, “I don’t understand. Why are you giving me these?” He set the stack down to flip through them, “I don’t have any…” Iruka paused on a page that had already been filled out in very shaky pen. There was his name and… Naruto’s name and…

Iruka’s eyes shot up to look at Naruto as they grew large. The man swallowed again and glanced from the stack, to Iruka, then back again a few times. “I um…” He started as he rubbed the back of his neck, “Well… of course you know my parents died a while ago, protecting the village and all that and I was uh… ya know, I was pretty much alone my entire childhood, until I got into the Academy.” Naruto glanced down at his tea cup as he smiled fondly, rubbing the back of his neck. “I never had a real family, and for years I was angry and upset and I acted out just to get someone to _notice_ me, to _talk_ to me and _acknowledge_ I was actually there, breathing and taking up space. But then you came in and you were…” he chuckled, “you were always on me about that stuff. I think you chased me down the hallway like a million times, screaming at the top of your laughs, waving your fist at me!” His chuckle turned into a laugh at the memories. “I thought you were going to have a stroke, with the way those veins were popping out of your head!” He went quiet and put his hands back in his lap to mess with, “But even through all of that, you never gave up on me. Even after failing to graduate four times, you never gave up and always kept pushing me and believing in me. And even after I _did_ graduate, you were always beside him, pushing me to do even better. You were always there to listen and to comfort me when no one else would even bother with me. Even before all this _Hero of the Hidden Leaf_ garbage, you were there with me for the highs and lows. You- you gave me a home, not physically, but emotionally. You _cared_ about me and what happened to me, and I just… I feel like, well… Like, I feel if there was _one_ person in this world who could be… I mean, who I _feel_ could be… No wait, god I said feel like three times.” He lifted a hand to press to his face, “Damn it, I practiced this like a million times in front of the mirror! Hold on, wait, I have notecards.” Naruto reached into his jacket to grab the very thick stack of notecards he had put together for this speech, only for them to go flying into the air like a flock of startled birds when he was tackled.

Letting out a startled shout, Naruto fell back, flailing. He made a face at the pain, but his eyes widened when he heard a sniffle. Looking down, he finally realized Iruka had jumped over the table to tackle him and was now hugging him so tight, Naruto felt his body ache. The man’s form was ridge and tense as his body shook with the force of his sobs. “I-Iruka-sensei?” Naruto tried cautiously, his hands hovering over his shaking back like he wasn’t sure if he should touch him or not.

It took Iruka a moment recover enough to make coherent speech, but when he did, he pulled back to look down at the still worried and startled man. “How could you be so stupid?!”

Naruto winced. That was _not_ the first thing he was hoping would come out of the man’s mouth.

The brunette placed his hands gently on the younger man’s cheeks as he sniffled and smiled, sometimes letting out a little sob that would shake his shoulders. “Don’t you remember what I told you all those years ago? You were seventeen and had such a fire to go out and fight, to charge head first into your problems and not let anyone fight them for you. I was so scared, _so scared._ I remember thinking: _This is it! This is where I lose him forever!”_ Naruto’s eyelids fluttered when tears fell onto his cheeks, but he never looked away. “I wrote you a letter, do you remember that? Did you even read it? I wrote you a letter, telling you to come back because I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you, because you were like a little brother to me and I loved you _so_ damn much. I still do.” Iruka took a moment to admire the man Naruto had grown up to be with a watery, fond smile. “I love you so much… and to me, you… you already are my son.”

Naruto’s eyes widened as he felt hope rise in his chest, loosening the thick knot of worry that had formed there. “So, does this mean you’ll…?”

Iruka nodded, “Yes! Of course I’ll adopt you, you big idiot!”

The blonde gasped as his whole face lit up. The anxiety that had been piling up for years was finally lifted away, leaving him with such a light and airy feeling, he swore he could jump to the moon and back. He let out an excited shrill and shot up to stand, dragging Iruka with him. He wrapped his arms around his waist and spun around the man’s small living room. Iruka laughed and protested, looking down to make sure they didn’t bump into anything, before turning his gaze back to Naruto when he was set down. “Sorry!” Naruto said in a breathless tone, “I’m just- I can’t believe this! I was so worried and I was putting this off for _years_ and I just… I can’t believe it! Haha!”

“What, did you think I was going to say _no?”_ Iruka asked, giving him a playful shove.

“I don’t know! Yes?”

“Oh my god! What kind of person do you take me for!?”

“I don’t know!” Naruto grinned and put his hands on the man’s shoulders, then dragged him in for a tight hug. Iruka laughed and returned it whole heartedly, closing his eyes to just bask in the moment. Finally Naruto pulled away and turned back to the table. “Well come on! Hurry up and sign everything! I already filled it out and it’s all legal! Trust me! I’m hokage after all! Plus ya know, more lawish-ly folks on the fourth floor looked at it so…”

“More _lawish-ly_ folks?” Iruka raised an eyebrow at him, “Now I _know_ I didn’t teach you that word.”

“Oh my god, don’t start! Just sign the damn paperwork!”

“Excuse me, I’m _legally_ your father now, so I can do whatever I damn well please!”

“Not if you don’t sign this damn paperwork! Come on!” Naruto picked up the packet and waved it at him, “I have waited fifteen years for this! I am _not_ waiting a moment longer just because you have a problem with my very colorful and intellectual vocabulary!”

Iruka crossed his arms and smirked, “Hmm, intellectual is a big word for you. Can you spell it?”

“ _Iruka so help me!”_

Laughing, the schoolteacher took the papers and sat down to sign in all the correct places. Once done, Iruka hardly had time to slip on his shoes before Naruto was dragging him out of his apartment and threw the streets back to the Hokage Tower, where they turned the paperwork in at the fourth floor’s legal division.

“Everything looks in order.” The woman at the desk said with a knowing smile, “Now I’ll just need to get the hokage to stamp his approval…” Naruto snatched the big red stamp from her and slammed it so hard down on the papers, that ink splattered everywhere. Iruka would have scolded him for the mess, if he wasn’t a mess himself. He allowed himself to be gathered up in another hug as tears threatened to spill over again. He gripped the man’s orange jacket tightly and took a few deep breathes to help ground himself.

Turning, Naruto quickly exited the office with Iruka’s wrist in hand and practically ran down the hall to a large conference room where he was supposed to have that mandatory meeting. He threw the doors open and was thrilled to see all his friends were still there.

“Naruto!” Sakura glared at him and crossed her arms, “Where the hell were you? Mandatory doesn’t mean _optional!”_

“Yeah yeah sorry,” Naruto brushed her comments off quickly then turned a blinding grin to the room. “Everyone! I have a very important announcement to make, so pay attention!” He bit his lip and paused for dramatic effect. He then placed his hands on Iruka’s shoulders from behind. “I would like you all to meet… my father.”

The room was silent with confusion for a moment, before Sakura let out a loud, dramatic gasp, putting her hands to her mouth. “No!” Naruto grinned and nodded to her quickly. She then let out a squeal and rushed over to hug them both. “Ah! Congratulations! I’m so happy for you!” She pulled back to look at Iruka, who was all flushed with pride and emotion, “He has been talking about this for _years._ I can’t tell you how many times he’s chickened out.”

“Sakura!” Naruto whined a little in embarrassment.

Shikamaru came over to slap Naruto on the back with his lazy grin, “Good for you, buddy.”

“I do hope you know what you’ve gotten yourself into.” Kakashi said from his lounged position in a chair by the conference table, though his eyes sparkled with glee. Iruka tried to give him a warning glare, but it only came out as an amused pout.

“About damn time.” Naruto looked over to see Sasuke leaning back against the wall close to him with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. The blonde beamed with pride. “Took you long enough.”

“It’s ok.” Iruka spoke up as Naruto wrapped his arms around his shoulders to hug him from the side. He smiled up at him with teary eyes as he placed a hand on his arm. “A son like this is worth waiting for.”

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by all those adorable adoption videos going around. Pulls at the heart strings a little <3


End file.
